I live in good old "sunny" California. I have a parts car I am possibly looking at getting, a 89 iroc 350 tpi. question is if i put the 350 in my 86 iroc, will it be legal to pass smog? or will the smog tech even be able to tell if all the stock emissions equipt is hooked up?

I don't know if a 350 has been put in my car in the past still haven't been able to decipher whether it is a 305 or 350. The car does have a lot more high end torque than my old 350 pickup did though

any help would be greatly appreciated!

edit: the 350 in the iroc does have vortec heads!

 

As long as it's EFI and has all the emissions parts on it I believe it is legal. But I'm just speaking from what I've read here and on other forums

 

It will only be legal if you put everything from the '89 on the '86, and go through the "motor change" process to get it certified.

You could probably sneak it through without going through all that, though. But, a sharp inspector may take note of the centerbolt valve covers and start checking more closely.

 

Just get the center bolt to perimeter bolt adapters & run 86 valve covers. Then they'll never know!

But with the Vortec heads, I wonder if they'd notice the missing EGR, etc.

 

As easy as it is to do the right thing, it doesn't make any sense to try to "sneak it by".

The 350 system will have "the good stuff" - ECM tune, dual cats, serpentine accessories, etc. Go through the motor change process once, they'll give you a bar code that identifies the vehicle as a legal combo - you'll never have to worry every other year when you go through the smog check process that the inspector might "catch on to you".

 

i checked the 350 engine, only has one cat. so ill need to swap the ecm? and wire harnesses?

ive replaced many engines, this would be my first "swap"

 

It's basically an engine replacement.

The '89 system doesn't have a cold start injector, so the harness and ECM are slightly different. Very simple to pull & swap out.

It is possible to pull the entire exhaust off without cutting it. Have to drop the rear end shock and track bar, and disconnect the park brake cable on one side, then the exhaust can be slid out.

 

thanks for all the help 5.7, i appreciate it. ill probably reuse my current exhaust as it is the exact same as the other car, only brand new! so 305 to 350 is considered a replacement?

also, i would REALLY like to keep my current intake, since it is polished and painted to match the car, so the cold start injector would still be there? could i use an earlier 350 ecm?

im new to the tpi cars so im trying to learn as much as i can!

 

The work is basically replacing stuff, but in the eyes of the smog enforcers, it's a motor change.